(CARICOM Secretariat, Turkeyen, Greater Georgetown, Guyana) It is with great pleasure that I welcome you Ambassador once again to the Headquarters of the Caribbean Community. Your posting here in Guyana would be the second time that our paths have crossed professionally, following one of your stints in Barbados while I served as Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Dominica.
When we met early last month, we had the opportunity to engage in wide-ranging discussions on a number of issues of importance to CARICOM and the United States. I know that you also visited the Secretariat a few weeks ago, along with the other members of the visiting US delegation, led by Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Julissia Reynoso, who were here to participate in the Second Meeting of the CBSI Commission. I understand from colleagues who participated in that Meeting that the discussions were very interesting and equally engaging.
Excellency, the United States of America and CARICOM have enjoyed robust and friendly relations for many years. This relationship has evolved, changing and adapting, as our respective domestic circumstances and geopolitics required. The one constant has been the strength of the relationship and the goodwill which are manifested in various activities at several levels.
We have taken note that in the last five months three senior Cabinet members of President Obama’s Administration have come to the Region and have been engaged in discussions with the Community. Secretary of State Hilary Clinton, met with our Foreign Ministers in Montego Bay, Jamaica; Secretary for Homeland Security Janet Napolitano attended the recently concluded Second Caribbean–United States Security Cooperation Dialogue held in Nassau, The Bahamas; and just last week Attorney-General Eric Holder visited Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago.
In all three visits the issue of Security featured prominently among the areas for discussion. As you may be aware, Excellency, Security was added as the fourth pillar of the Community in 2007 by the Heads of Government who were fully cognisant of its multi-dimensional nature and its critical importance for the sustainable development of the Region.
Since the launch of CBSI in 2010, the US government has provided significant funding to the Region through a number of projects and initiatives. These are seeking to reduce illicit drug trafficking, enhance public safety and security through the reduction of crime and violence, and promote social justice. This arrangement is mutually beneficial to both the US and the Region in the face of on-going threats to the security of our respective countries. Indeed, at the Dialogue held in Nassau earlier this month, both parties agreed to adopt a sustained approach to citizen security.
We are deeply appreciative of this support from the United States in this important area, which is fundamental to providing the right environment for securing our objective of sustainable development.
Excellency, our relationship also encompasses productive discussions in the areas of Trade, Economic Growth, Climate Change, Trafficking in Persons and Energy. In the area of trade, it was only a little over a month ago that a team of Officials from the US Trade Representative Office visited the CARICOM Secretariat in order to continue discussions on the Revised Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA). The revised Agreement will form the basis for CARICOM-US engagement on trade and economic cooperation in the future and we look forward to the early conclusion of this Agreement, which we anticipate will redound to the benefit of both Sides.
We were pleased to learn in the Meeting with Secretary of State Clinton earlier this year, of the intention to launch the International Diaspora Engagement Alliance, better known as IDEA marketplace. IDEA as we understand it, is an initiative which will bring together governments, corporations and non-profit organisations to facilitate Diaspora communities in the promotion of trade and investment, job creation, business start-ups and the development of projects that will benefit their countries of origin. The IDEA initiative gives meaning to the fruitful dialogue with the CARICOM Diaspora under the umbrella of the Conference on the Caribbean which took place in Washington, D.C. and New York in 2007 and 2008 respectively. IDEA is an exciting initiative on which the Region stands ready to collaborate, in order to promote entrepreneurship and spur economic growth among our Member States.
Ambassador, the US and CARICOM Member States are in the direct path of hurricanes which, fuelled by the increase in sea temperatures, continue to increase in frequency and intensity. The intensification of these violent storms, rising sea levels, and the erosion of arable land are just some of the catastrophic effects of Climate Change. Climate Change is not only an environmental problem but also poses a clear risk to development and international security. It is in this context that the Region acknowledges and commends the efforts of the US Government to initiate programs such as the Energy and Climate Partnership of the Americas (ECPA) which presently has 40 projects underway throughout the Americas including in some CARICOM Member States.
CARICOM is of the view that the best way to combat climate change is on a global level and within the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). The Region therefore urges the US to commit to the outcome of the Cancun Climate Change Conference in order to advance the chances of mitigation and adaptation for our Small Island Developing and low-lying Coastal States faced with the ravages of climate change, as we approach the negotiations in Durban, South Africa in December of this year.
As you can see, Ambassador, there is much in train and much that will keep us busy during your sojourn here. There is no doubt that your four prior postings in the Region along with your expansive work with several CARICOM Member States have served to familiarise you with the many issues of importance and of concern to us. I am confident that this extensive knowledge will serve you in good stead as you work with the Secretariat to further advance relations between the Caribbean Community and the United States of America. It is on this note that I accept with pleasure, the Letters accrediting you as the Plenipotentiary Representative of the United States of America to the Caribbean Community and wish you a very successful tour of duty. Thank you.
